Rapid and easy testing of internal combustion piston engines is becoming more and more desirable both in the automotive industry, such as manufacturers and engine repair establishments, in which full automation is not really feasible. In present-day engine-manufacture and diagnosing, testing of each and every engine component and its subsystems is preferred over sample testing. However, because of the high expense of labor and diagnostic equipment, this is not always feasible or possible. In the present-day engine-repair establishments, which cannot be fully automated, it is this high cost of manual labor and overhead which limits the time which can be spared for testing any given engine or subsystem. Therefore, there is need for devices that accurately detect and measure various conditions of an engine.
To help diagnosis engine or mechanical trouble in certain areas, the measuring of pressure or vacuum is conducted. Systems such as fuel injection, transmission and engine compression all incorporate the use of pressure. Venting, among many other uses in the vehicle, incorporate the use of vacuum and vacuum lines.
For example, the fuel injection is a system for spraying fuel into the cylinders of gasoline and diesel engines. When used on gasoline engines, it replaces the carburetor, a device that mixes air and fuel. On most gasoline engines that use fuel injection, a pump forces fuel under high pressure to a nozzle located at each cylinder. The nozzles spray the fuel into an intake port (chamber) near each cylinder. There, the fuel partially mixes with air before a valve opens to admit the mixture into the cylinder. The fuel may be injected into the intake port in a continuous or periodic stream.
In order for the automobile to operate correctly and in an efficient manner, the fuel injection system needs to maintain an appropriate amount of pressure to force the fuel into the engine. The prior art consists of tools, which are comprised of mechanical gauges and connections that require time and the commitment of valuable resources both financial and non-financial assets. Furthermore, these tools are usually stand-alone units, making them large and bulky. Another downside to these tools is that they only serve one purpose, measuring pressure and vacuum. As a result, business decisions were made as to whether an automotive shop could buy these expensive tools in light of the demand from their customers.
Therefore, there exists a need for an affordable tool that efficiently and accurately determines pressure in various subsystems of mechanical devices.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a portable device that is capable of measuring pressure and vacuum measurement as well as perform additional testing procedures.